How take-home pay is calculated
Take-home pay, also called net pay, is what’s left of your salary once Income Tax, National Insurance and any student loan repayment have been deducted. Working it out is a step-by-step process: your Personal Allowance (£12,570 for most people) is subtracted from your gross salary to give your taxable income, Income Tax is charged on that taxable income across whichever bands it falls into, and National Insurance is charged separately on your gross earnings above £12,570.
This calculator runs through all of those steps automatically using the actual 2026/27 rates and thresholds, so the figures reflect your specific salary rather than a flat percentage estimate.
Monthly, four-weekly and weekly pay explained
A year has 12 monthly pay periods, 13 four-weekly pay periods, and 52 weekly pay periods, which is the same convention HMRC uses in its own PAYE tax tables. This calculator uses those figures to convert your salary between frequencies, so a monthly amount is multiplied by 12 to get an annual salary, a four-weekly amount by 13, and a weekly amount by 52.
Because 13 doesn’t divide evenly into 12 calendar months, most months bring one four-weekly payday, but a couple of months each year bring two. Your total annual pay works out the same either way, it’s simply spread across more, smaller paydays than a monthly salary is.
Take-home pay by salary
A quick reference for common salaries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with no student loan. These figures come straight from the calculator above, so your own result will match exactly if you enter the same salary.
| Gross salary | Take-home / year | Take-home / month | % kept |
|---|---|---|---|
| £20,000 | £17,920 | £1,493 | 89.6% |
| £25,000 | £21,520 | £1,793 | 86.1% |
| £30,000 | £25,120 | £2,093 | 83.7% |
| £35,000 | £28,720 | £2,393 | 82.1% |
| £40,000 | £32,320 | £2,693 | 80.8% |
| £45,000 | £35,920 | £2,993 | 79.8% |
| £50,000 | £39,520 | £3,293 | 79.0% |
| £60,000 | £45,357 | £3,780 | 75.6% |
| £70,000 | £51,157 | £4,263 | 73.1% |
| £80,000 | £56,957 | £4,746 | 71.2% |
| £100,000 | £68,557 | £5,713 | 68.6% |
| £120,000 | £75,914 | £6,326 | 63.3% |
Income Tax and National Insurance
For 2026/27, the basic rate of 20% applies to income between £12,570 and £50,270 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, then 40% up to £125,140, and 45% above that. Employee National Insurance is charged at 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above that. If your income goes over £100,000, your Personal Allowance starts to taper away, which this calculator accounts for automatically.
Student loan and take-home pay
If you select a student loan plan, this calculator adds the correct repayment on top of your Income Tax and National Insurance: 9% of income above your plan’s threshold for Plan 1, 2, 4 or 5, and a further 6% above a separate, lower threshold if you also have a Postgraduate Loan. Both can apply at the same time if relevant.
Take-home pay in Scotland
| Band | Rate |
|---|---|
| Starter rate | 19% |
| Basic rate | 20% |
| Intermediate rate | 21% |
| Higher rate | 42% |
| Advanced rate | 45% |
| Top rate | 48% |
Select “Scotland” as your tax region in the calculator above for an accurate result using these six bands instead of the three used in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. National Insurance and student loan rules are the same across the whole of the UK.
Frequently asked questions
How is take-home pay calculated in the UK?
Start with your gross salary, subtract your Personal Allowance to get taxable income, then apply Income Tax at 20%, 40% or 45% depending on which band each portion falls into (Scotland uses six bands instead of three). Separately, National Insurance is charged at 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above that. Subtract Income Tax, National Insurance and any student loan repayment from your gross salary, and what's left is your take-home pay.
What's the difference between gross pay and take-home pay?
Gross pay is your salary before anything is deducted. Take-home pay, also called net pay, is what actually lands in your bank account after Income Tax, National Insurance and any other deductions such as a student loan repayment or pension contribution. For most people on a typical UK salary, take-home pay works out to somewhere between 70% and 85% of gross pay.
How many pay periods are there in a year?
There are 12 monthly pay periods, 13 four-weekly pay periods, and 52 weekly pay periods in a year. This is the same convention HMRC uses for PAYE tax tables, and it's why this calculator uses those exact figures to convert between an annual salary and a monthly, four-weekly or weekly amount.
Why does my pay look different some months if I'm paid four-weekly?
Because 13 four-weekly periods don't divide evenly across 12 calendar months, most months contain one payday, but a couple of months each year end up with two. Your total annual pay is the same either way; it's just distributed differently across the calendar than monthly pay is. If your take-home pay per payday looks lower than a colleague paid monthly on the same salary, that's usually why: four-weekly pay is spread over 13 paydays instead of 12.
How much tax will I pay on my salary?
It depends on how much of your income falls into each Income Tax band. The first £12,570 is tax-free, the next portion up to £50,270 is taxed at 20% in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, then 40% up to £125,140, and 45% above that. Scotland's bands are different, shown further down this page. Enter your own salary in the calculator above for an exact figure rather than a rough estimate.
Does this take-home pay calculator include pension contributions?
Not in this version. It covers Income Tax, National Insurance and student loan deductions on a straightforward salary. If you're contributing to a workplace pension through salary sacrifice, use the salary sacrifice calculator instead, since that changes your taxable and NIable pay in a way this calculator doesn't model.
What is a good take-home pay percentage?
There's no fixed benchmark, since it depends entirely on your income level. Someone earning below the Personal Allowance keeps 100% of their gross pay; a basic-rate taxpayer typically keeps around 80 to 85%; and someone paying the 40% or 45% rate on part of their income keeps a lower percentage overall, even though their take-home amount is still much higher in cash terms. The calculator above shows your own take-home percentage next to the figures.
How does a student loan affect my take-home pay?
If you select a student loan plan, 9% of your income above that plan's repayment threshold is deducted alongside Income Tax and National Insurance (6% for a Postgraduate Loan, above its own lower threshold). It comes straight out of your pay automatically through PAYE, so it's already reflected in the take-home figures this calculator shows you.
Is take-home pay different in Scotland?
Yes, because Scotland has its own Income Tax bands and rates, six of them instead of the three used in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. National Insurance, student loan rules and the Personal Allowance are the same across the whole of the UK. Select "Scotland" as your tax region in the calculator above for an accurate result.
Methodology and assumptions
This calculator assumes:
- A single salary with no other income, bonuses, benefits in kind, or pension contributions. For salary sacrifice pension contributions, use the salary sacrifice pension calculator instead.
- Income Tax and National Insurance are calculated on an annualised basis. Real payroll NI is worked out non-cumulatively per pay period, which can cause small, pence-level differences for irregular pay.
- Monthly, four-weekly and weekly figures are the annual amount divided by 12, 13 or 52 respectively, matching HMRC’s PAYE period convention.
- All figures are rounded to the nearest penny.
Full source citations for every rate and threshold used are listed on the About & methodology page.
Sources
Figures for the 2026/27 tax year are taken directly from:
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances (GOV.UK)
- Income Tax in Scotland (GOV.UK)
- Scottish Income Tax: rates and bands 2026 to 2027 (gov.scot)
- Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 (GOV.UK)
- National Insurance rates and categories (GOV.UK)
- Salary sacrifice and the effects on PAYE (GOV.UK)
- Tax on your private pension contributions: Annual Allowance (GOV.UK)
- Tapered annual allowance explained 2026/27 (MoneyHelper)
- Money purchase annual allowance (MPAA) (MoneyHelper)
- National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (GOV.UK)
- Maximum weekly working hours (GOV.UK)
- Personal Allowances: adjusted net income (GOV.UK)
- Child Benefit tax charge (GOV.UK)
- Child Benefit rates (GOV.UK)
- Company car benefit: the appropriate percentage, 480 Appendix 2 (GOV.UK)
Further guidance referenced on this page:
- Salary sacrifice and the effects on PAYE (GOV.UK)
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances (GOV.UK)
- Income Tax in Scotland (GOV.UK)
- National Insurance rates and categories (GOV.UK)
- Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 (GOV.UK)
- Repaying your student loan (GOV.UK)
- National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (GOV.UK)
- National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill briefing (House of Commons Library)
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